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Introduction to Pastoral Care and Counseling: Care for Stories, Systems, and Self TMPS7093.01 2 Credit Course1

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Introduction to Pastoral Care and Counseling: Care for Stories, Systems, and Self TMPS7093.01 2 Credit Course1 Introduction to Pastoral Care and Counseling: Care for Stories, Systems, and Self TMPS7093.01 2 credit course1 Rev. Philip Browning Helsel, PhD, BCC Summer Institute 2015 First Session: July 20th, 2014­July 31st, 2014. 8:30­11:45 Office hours by appointment Contact information: [email protected]; 617­552­6524 Course Description: In this introduction to pastoral care and counseling, you will reflect on the discipline of pastoral care as a charism for the whole people of God that can be practiced in empowering and teachable ways. The course is influenced by narrative therapy and thus begins with a story­based approach; it explores how systems can nourish pastoral care and be transformed by it; and it offers self­care resources including guidelines for ethical ministry and referral. Through journaling, written reflection, class discussion, and a final integrative paper, you will explore the theological horizons of pastoral care and counseling, including the interface between counseling ministry and sacramental ministry. Considered a foundational course in pastoral care and counseling for persons working in a variety of contexts, it will address the particular topics of family counseling, crisis ministry, end of life care, brief therapy, and professional ethics, teaching pastoral care not simply as the application of theology but as a distinctive source of theological knowledge. Objectives: By the end of the course you will be able to— (Theological) ­Consider the significant continuities and differences between pastoral care and counseling and make efforts to discern God’s presence within each. (Methodological) ­Engage particular ministry and brief pastoral counseling scenarios using narrative, family systems, and psychodynamic approaches to pastoral care and counseling. (Practical) ­Assess the risk of domestic violence, abuse, and suicide, and have resources at hand to respond to these crises. (Personal) ­Cultivate empathic imagination, developing attention to your own anxious responses to another’s distress and learning how to care for this anxiety. 1 If the student needs the course to count for a three credit class, she or he can petition the instructor for a further assignment. The additional assignment for this class will be reading the full text of Pamela Cooper­ White’s second edition of The Cry of Tamar: Violence Against Women and Church’s Response and writing a three page single­spaced reflection essay. Revised March 23, 2015. 2 (Ethical) ­Evaluate ethical practices in pastoral care ministry, including planning for effective referral and follow­up. In addition to these stated objectives, a part of the first session will be devoted to helping you develop three objectives of your own, not shared with the instructor, that you can use to guide your participation in the course. Engagements: Role Playing: This class will include scripted and improvised role plays with your colleagues in which you will cultivate pastoral imagination and attend to your own responses to pastoral care scenarios. Often we can only explore our own impulsive reactions to others by having a mirror for these responses. Rather than exemplifying ‘expert’ pastoral care, through these exercises you will ‘workshop’ pastoral care in order toward the goal of developing self­ awareness and counseling wisdom. Critical Reflection Papers: Every two weeks you will write a one­page single spaced reflection paper. Please bring the printed version of the paper to class to use in the discussion and then submit the hard copy to the instructor at the end of the class. This will be a review of the important themes from the text that connect with your own experience/context for ministry. About two­thirds of the paper should be used for a critical review of the most important themes of the reading and the final third can be used to reflect on your own ongoing questions from the reading or provoke further questions that the texts have raised for you (see Reflection Paper Rubric below for grading schematic). Each paper should include some engagement with the primary theme of the text. For this paper you should focus on one, or at most two of the readings for the week and only the required reading. Do not write on the supplemental or recommended readings for the week. If there are multiple chapters assigned, choose one, or at most two chapters on which to write. If a reading is bolded, I require you to write on that reading for that particular week. You cannot do extra papers early in the semester to avoid writing later. First paper: July 21st or July 22nd Second paper: July 23rd or July 24th Third paper: July 27th or July 28th Fourth paper: July 29th or July 30th Revised March 23, 2015. 3 Final Paper: If you choose a paper, you will write a ten to twelve page double­spaced paper that will address a particular problem or topic presented in the course materials of particular interest to you. In the first two thirds of the paper you will illustrate how the readings illuminate the dynamics of the problem or topic and, in the final third of the paper, you will evaluate how the problem or topic can be addressed in ways that lead to spiritual growth, empowerment, and social transformation (35% of grade). You should use the “Notes­Bibliography” Style of footnotes from the seventh edition of Kate L. Turabian’s A Manual for Writers (Chicago: University of Chicago, 2007) to format your paper (see pages 141­215). Submit your paper to Blackboard and/or email it to your instructor on August 3rd 2015, at 6 PM (no hard copies necessary). 1. Description of the problem or topic using course readings. In the first two­thirds of the paper you will describe a problem or topic in a particular context of ministry or non­profit work that can be suitably illuminated by one or several of the course readings. Describe the problem in its context and draw it into conversation with readings from the course. It is important to supplement this discussion with outside resources that inform your work on this topic. In this descriptive section be certain to address the specific links between the course reading and the problem you are analyzing and show why these links are significant, building a case as to why the particular theoretical framework you propose is helpful. 2. Propose how the problem or topic can be addressed in ways that lead to spiritual growth, empowerment, and social transformation. In the final third of the paper make a constructive proposal that explicates a way forward in regards to this particular problem. If it is a particularly severe and intractable problem your proposal need not pretend to be definitive, but could acknowledge its limitation and still claim to be worthwhile. I am looking for you to integrate the themes of the course toward a concrete proposal for how a problem can be addressed in more beneficial ways that demonstrate that your approach could be improved by interacting with the course material. This could be a problem or topic that you have faced personally, provided you feel capable of analyzing it in an academic context. Your papers will be held in confidence and destroyed at the end of the semester. Nevertheless, if you have a question about how much to share, err on the side of sharing less. The problem or topic that you choose to focus on could arise from your own ministry experience, from a community that you have witnessed or worked in, or from a community where you expect to work. If your own pastoral work has been limited thus far, it could also be ‘ripped from the headlines,’ a community care or pastoral care problem that is not being adequately addressed by society and needs our attention. Revised March 23, 2015. 4 Inclusive Language: In all your writing please use gender­neutral language for humankind and for God. This can be done by writing “humankind” or “persons” rather than “mankind” and stating simply “God” or “Godself” rather than “He,” “Him,” or “His.” Participation: A large part of pastoral ministry is simply showing up and respectfully engaging in relationships. As we learn about pastoral care and counseling it is important that we develop an environment that respects a diversity of opinions and promotes honest expression of differences. To this end, class participation is graded in the following ways. 1. Participation in class activities and discussions 2. Evidence that you have read and are able to engage the readings for the day 3. Minimal distractions such as internet use, emailing, or Facebooking during class (15% of grade). Grades: Reflection Papers (35%) Final Paper/Presentation (50%) Participation (15%) Revised March 23, 2015. 5 Grading: A = 100­95; A­ = 94­90; B+ = 89­87; B = 86­83; B­ = 82­80; C+ = 79­77; C = 76­73; C­ = 72­70 Revised March 23, 2015. 6 Below are the Rubrics I will use to grade your work. Critical Reflection Paper: Content: Demonstrated a thorough grasp of the reading material including an ability to sort out its important themes and present them succinctly (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Style: Employed an adequate use of grammar, diction, style; proper use of parenthesis after a direct quote; and professional appearance of work. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Critical Thinking: Offered a ‘birds eye view’ of the readings themes in ways that suggested a grasp of the context of the author’s argument and suggested directions for future exploration. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Summative Grade (5 being highest, 1 being lowest): _________ Successful completion of the criteria of these rubrics guarantees a satisfactory grade, but does not necessitate earning an excellent grade. Final Paper: Content: Demonstrated a thorough grasp of the material including an ability to sort out its important themes.
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